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French and Indian War
In 1754, after six relatively peaceful years, the French and British conflict reignited. This is known as the Frenchand Indian War. -
Writs of Assistance
A general search warrant that allowed British customs officials to search any colonial ship or building they believed to be holding smuggled goods. -
Treaty of Paris 1763
The war ended when the treaty was signed. The treaty permitted Spain to keep lands west of the Mississippi and New Orleans, which it had gained from France. -
Proclaimation of 1763
It was implemented to stop colonists from expanding west of the Appalachian mountains. The colonists became convinced that the British government didn't care about their needs at all. -
Sugar Act
It halved the duty on foreign-made molasses to prevent the colonists from smuggling it. Certain imports were starting to be taxed, and it provided those accused of violating the act a trial in a vice-admiralty court rather than a colonial court. Each case is decided by a single judge rather than a jury of sympathetic colonists. -
Stamp Act
Imposed a tax on documents and printed items such as wills, newspapers, and playing cards. A stamp was put on items to prove that the tax had been paid. -
Sons of Liberty & Samuel Adams
Led by men such as Samuel Adams, one of the founders of the Sons of Liberty, the colonists again boycotted British goods. -
Declaratory Act
Parliament passed the Declaratory Act, which asserted Parliament’s full right to bind the colonies and people of America in all cases whatsoever. -
Townshend Acts & Response
Named after Charles Townshend, the Townshend Acts taxed goods that were imported into the colony from Britain, such as lead, glass, paint, and paper. The Acts also imposed a tax on tea, the most popular drink in the colonies. Led by Sam Adams, the Sons of Liberty boycotted these taxed goods. -
Boston Massacre
On March 5, 1770, a mob gathered in front
of the Boston Customs House and taunted the British soldiers standing guard
there. Shots were fired and five colonists, including Crispus Attucks, were killed
or mortally wounded. Colonial leaders quickly labeled the confrontation the
Boston Massacre. -
John Locke's Social Contract
John Locke proposed the idea that every society is
based on a social contract, which is an agreement in which the people consent to choose and obey a government as long as it stands by their naturaI rights. If the government violates that social contract by taking away or interfering with those rights, the peopIe have the right to resist and even overthrow the government in a severe situation. -
Tea Act
The act granted the company the right to sell tea to the colonies free of the taxes that colonial tea sellers had to pay. Which made tea only availible through one source. -
Boston Tea Party
A group of rebeIs dressed up as nativa americans and boarded the three ships anchored in the harbor. The imposter indians threw 18,000 pounds of the East India Company’s tea into the water. -
The Intolerable Acts
The Intolerable acts caused a total shutdown of Boston harbor, and the implementation of the quartering act, which authorized British commanders to house soIdiers in vacant private homes and other buiIdings. -
First Continental Congress
In response to Britain’s actions, the committees of correspondence assembled the First Continental Congress. In September 1774, 56 delegates met in Philadelphia and drew up a declaration of colonial rights. -
Minutemen
They were civilian soldiers who pledged to be ready to fight against the British on a minute’s notice, similar to a national guard. -
Midnight Riders: Revere, Dawes, Prescott
Paul Revere, William Dawes, and Samuel Prescott rode out to spread word that 700 British troops were headed their way.
The darkened countryside rang with church bells and gunshots to signal nearby towns. This gave the army plenty of time to prepare for battle. -
The Battle of Lexington
The king’s troops reached Lexington on a cold, windy dawn. The British commander ordered the minutemen to lay down their arms and leave, and the colonists began to move out without laying down their muskets. Then someone fired, and the British soldiers sent a volley of shots into the departing militia. -
Second Continental Congress
The Ioyalties that divided coIonists sparked endIess debates at the Second Continental Congress. Some delegates called for independence, while others argued for reconciliation with England. -
Continental Army
Congress agreed to recognize the colonial militia as the Continental Army and appointed George Washington as its commander. -
The Battle of Bunker Hill
2,400 redcoats scrambled up the hill and at the very last second they opened fire and the rebels mowed down the redcoats. When the dust settled, the rebels lost 450 men but the redcoats lost over a thousand. -
Olive Branch Petition
Congress sent the king the Olive Branch Petition, asking a return to the peace that had been deteriorating between Britain and the colonies. -
The Battle of Concord
The redcoats lined up to march back to Boston, but the march quickly became a disaster for the soldiers. Over a few thousand
minutemen had assembled by now, and they opened fire on the marching troops from behind waIIs and trees. British soldiers fell by the dozen. -
Publication of Common Sense
Thomas Paine’s pamphlet Common Sense helped to relinquish many colonists’ doubts and fears about separating from England once and for all. -
The Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson, was created to command that England separate from the colonies. The colonists had declared their freedom from Britain. They would now have to fight for it. -
Loyalists and Patriots
Loyalists were those who opposed independence
and remained loyal to the British king, while the Patriots saw a better land of opportunity as an independent America. -
Redcoats push Washington’s army across the Delaware River into Pennsylvania
The untrained and poorIy equipped rebel troops soon retreated. By fall, the redcoats had pushed Washington’s army across the Delaware River into Pennsylvania. Washington then made a bold move... -
Washington’s Christmas Surprise Attack
In the middle of a storm, Washington led 2,400 men across the icy Delaware River. They then proceeded to Trenton and were able to complete a surprise attack on the Hessian forces. -
The Batte of Saratoga
General John Burgoyne planned to lead an army down a route of lakes from Canada to Albany, where he would meet British troops as they arrived from New York City. The two regiments would then join forces to isolate New England from the rest of the colonies. -
French-American Alliance
The French signed an alliance with the Americans in February
1778 and openly joined them in their fight against British forces. -
Valley Forge
Washington and his Continental Army—desperately low on
food and supplies—fought to stay alive at winter camp in
Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. More than 2,000 soldiers died,
yet the survivors didn’t desert. Their endurance and suffering
filled Washington’s letters to the Congress and his friends. -
Friedrich von Steuben and Marquis de Lafayette
Friedrich von Steuben was a Prussian captain and a skillful drillmaster. He transformed the Continental army durastically. -
British Victories in the South
The British general then moved the fight to Virginia. He led his army onto the peninsula between the James and York rivers and camped at Yorktown. They captured Charles Town, South Carolina, in May 1780. -
British surrender at Yorktown
When the British were surrounded by 17,000 U.S. and French troops, they surrendered on Yorktown peninsula. -
Treaty of Paris
In 1783, delegates signed the treaty, which confirmed U.S. Independence and set the boundaries of the new nation.
